The current invention relates to the field of trash receptacles, and more particularly to trash receptacles that incorporate a means of releasing the vacuum typically created between the liner bag and the inner walls and bottom of the receptacle.
Trash receptacles come in a variety of shapes and sizes and are commonly used in domestic, commercial and industrial applications. In order to avoid contamination of the interior of such receptacles, a plastically deformable liner bag is usually inserted into the receptacle, such that the liner covers the side walls and bottom of the receptacle and extends around the perimeter of the receptacle opening. As the liner bag is filled with trash, it is compressed against the sides and bottom of the receptacle. This compression forces the air out of the spaces between the liner and the interior of the receptacle, thereby creating a partial vacuum, which offers strong resistance to removal of the liner when the receptacle is full. Such resistance often compels a person to hold down the receptacle with one hand while lifting the liner bag with the other hand. Consequently, the simple task of removing a trash bag from its receptacle is rendered difficult and awkward.
The prior art as it relates to trash receptacles with vacuum release vents is reviewed in U.S. application Ser. No. 12/662,419, of which this application is a continuation-in-part. In addition to the limitations of the prior art discussed in the parent application, the prior art devices do not function properly when the liner bag is tightly attached around the rim of the receptacle. Many of the trash liner bags now in use have elastic or tie cords that seal off the inflow and exhaust of air at the top of the receptacle. A truly functional vacuum release system must allow venting in both directions after the bag has been sealed on the rim of the receptacle. Among the prior art patent documents, only the patent application of Herndon (US 2009/0255934) enables venting when the top of the receptacle is sealed, but the venting taught by Herndon is one-directional—only allowing air inflow, but not allowing exhaust air to escape. This becomes more of a problem with today's drawstring bags that create an airtight seal on the rim of the receptacle and have the potential to create a “reverse balloon effect” if the trapped air cannot be evacuated as the liner bag expands when filled with trash. The design of the present invention, on the other hand, enables venting in both directions, and thereby addresses the vacuum problem during the insertion as well as the removal of the liner after being filled.
There also exists a need, as yet unfulfilled by the prior art, for a vacuum release vent that can be integrally formed in or inserted into an ordinary trash receptacle of virtually any size and shape. The present invention meets this need by providing a series of multi-form vent panel configurations. In versions of the multi-form vents that are designed for receptacles having a square or rectangular opening, insertable or integral flat panels diagonally transect one or more corners of the receptacle to create right-triangular prism-shaped airways that extend from the receptacle's opening to its bottom beneath the liner bag. In other versions of the multi-form panels, which are adaptable to circular or elliptical receptacle openings, as well as square or rectangular openings, convex panels enclose one or more longitudinal columns along an interior or exterior wall of the receptacle to create semi-cylindrical airways that extend from the opening to the bottom beneath the liner bag.